KPMG BRIGHT minds helping to create a BRIGHTer world
Overview
KPMG aims to provide profit with a purpose in its delivery of audit, tax and advisory services. BRIGHT launched in 2010 as KPMG’s first cross-border CSR programme and encourages people to use their professional skills to Act Local and Act Global to support the UN MDGs. We have a £5 million commitment through five-year partnership plans with each BRIGHT partner to ensure we work from a shared vision to achieve mutual goals. Through these we aim to build their organisational and financial capacity and that of their beneficiaries, providing pro bono capacity-building support aimed at helping them achieve their goals.
Impact
So far BRIGHT has resulted in a £2.6 million investment through 96 BRIGHT participants, representing 15 KPMG practices, delivering 738 hours of pro bono across 10 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. BRIGHT uses KPMG’s diverse and expert skills as a global organisation creating cross-border solutions for our client’s complex challenges to maximum benefit for our community partners. By Acting Locally and Acting Globally to leverage our professional skills, we have achieved record levels of community investment and maximised our impact. In the first year of BRIGHT alone, our firm-wide volunteering numbers increased by 51%.
Innovation
BRIGHT harnesses the skills and enthusiasm of all our people through local competitions that drive social and environmental innovation and support local community organisations in the areas around our EMA offices. Winners of these competitions implement their winning ideas locally and have the opportunity to apply for an international pro bono placement. The programme is also open to our ‘Emerging Leaders’ whose skills supplement those of the competition winners during placements. BRIGHT therefore facilitates global collaboration, sending multi-national and disciplinary teams to work with our three international community partners Fairtrade, Restless Development and Child Helpline International in Africa and Asia.[/one_half_last]
Insight
Traditionally, CSR has not always been focused on skilled-volunteering and linked to the core business strategy. We therefore aim to build the capacity of our BRIGHT partners by utilising the professional skills of our people and mirroring the professional services we already provide to clients in order to maximise learning and development, impact and sustainability. The main programmatic learning has been the importance of accurately matching skills and involving our community partners in the short-listing and interviewing process. We also have a robust M&E system in place to captures learnings from all stakeholders at all stages of the programmatic cycle.
Inspiration
With effective organisational, management and technical support, Fairtrade Africa smallholders can participate effectively in the supply chain, thereby promoting sustainable development and reducing poverty. Financial training modules developed and delivered by BRIGHT participants in 2011 have been rolled out to 635,000 Fairtrade Africa farmers, who can now benefit from better financial management. Last year we worked with small producers, banks and credit providers to develop and implement a system that enabled small producer organisations to assess their businesses and therefore gain credit. This has resulted in more funding being released and roll-out of the model on a wider scale.[/one_half_last]
Speaker
Anya Todd
CSR Project Coordinator
KPMG LLP
Anya has been working in the CSR team at KPMG since July 2011. Since then, she has been responsible for the creation of an on-boarding library intended to serve as a valuable resource for CSR practitioners of all levels and from all KPMG member firms across Europe, coordinating the BRIGHT programme (KPMG’s international pro bono programme which is the focus for this award entry) and management of donations in the UK as well as KPMG’s group volunteering and social inclusion programmes.